Black Oil Sunflower Seed – preferred by birds everywhere by Elaine Lockey

With almost a foot of snow descending from the skies at my house in the foothills, I worry about the wild critters who are scrounging for food outside.  I am very glad that I filled my bird feeders the day before the snowstorm so there would be plenty of abundant food for the birds.  Juncos, House Finches, Chickadees and Stellar Jays all compete for room on my feeders and what falls below them.  

Summer Hummingbird Tips By Joyce D’Agostino

Photo courtesy National Audubon Society

Now that it’s July, hopefully you are enjoying the flowering plants you added to your garden to attract pollinators. In addition to the butterflies and bees, July also brings a second opportunity to bring colorful hummingbirds to your landscape. The hummingbirds will be looking for sources of food and will remain in the area for several months.

The 2018 Great Backyard Bird Count By Joyce D’Agostino

Photo by Joyce D'Agostino

During the fall and winter when most of us are not outside working in a garden, birdwatching is often an enjoyable pastime. If you love watching the native birds come to your yard and feeder, then you might want to participate in this important and fun project from the Audubon Society.

Feeding Birds in the Fall and Winter By Joyce D’Agostino

Photo by Joyce D'Agostino

Like most outdoor wildlife, birds depend on the natural surroundings for food, water and shelter. Often some areas have little open space for wildlife to thrive and providing supplemental nutrition during the fall and winter can help birds survive and cope with the changing weather.

In a previous blog (10/19/2017: Love Birds and Pollinators? Don't Clean the Fall Garden by Carol King) we discussed how not removing some of your flower seed heads can provide a good source of seeds for the birds.  So instead of doing a full scale clean up of your landscape to remove dried seeds and pods, leave some for the wildlife to enjoy. 

Providing seed and suet blocks for the birds throughout the cold weather months is also a good and acceptable way to give birds an extra source of nutrition.  

There has been some discussion as to whether filling your birdfeeder with seeds is good for the birds or if they should depend solely on natural foraging and finding open water sources. Research shows that providing food for the birds is acceptable and focusing on the right seed such as the black sunflower seeds which is high in nutrition, plus fresh water, provides an important and healthy supplement to the bird’s diets. 

For water, you don’t need to invest in an expensive birdbath, a shallow durable dish will work just as well. Change the water often so that it doesn’t freeze and remains clean is important. Electric or solar water heaters can also be purchased to keep the water from freezing. 

When it comes to choosing the best food, before investing in a large amount of certain seed, first start with the black sunflower seed. If you then want to test another type of seed, start with a small amount.  

Choosing the right bushes and trees to add to your landscape also is very important to provide shelter from the weather and predators. The bulletins below provide good research based information on feeding your birds and other wildlife and suggestions for shelter plants:

Winter Bird Feeding

Feeding Wildlife Puts Everyone at Risk

Plantalk Colorado: Attracting Birds

Crow Damage and Control by Joyce D'agostina

American Crow, photo courtesy audubon.org

Attracting birds, bees and butterflies to your garden has always been a great idea. However this year, I have notice a much larger population of the black crow, Corvus corax, in our neighborhood. Crows have been known for many years to be foragers who will eat just about anything, including your favorite garden fruits and vegetables.

About mid-summer, when some of my tomatoes were finally ripening, I heard a commotion in the garden and noticed several of the crows flying out of my garden area. To my disappointment, they had helped themselves to several of the ripe tomatoes and also had done damage to a few others.

Since I am not always available to catch these crows when they are in my garden, I had to think of something to help deter them. The magpies also were very interested in my garden crops so I had to think fast to try to come up with something to deter them without doing harm or damaging my garden. Crows are known to be very clever birds with great memories and tend to travel in groups so that they help protect each other as they forage so I had to find something effective.

Mylar windsock, photo by Joyce D'agostina

One item that I saw in a gardening catalog is a windsock type device that you hang in your garden. This item was made from a Mylar plastic that caused bright hologram type lights as the streamers move in the breeze. This was reported to be annoying and a deterrent to birds but was harmless to bees and butterflies.

I purchased one of these windsocks and hung it in the garden. I noticed almost immediately that the birds stayed away from the garden and no more plucked or pecked tomatoes. It was also hanging close to a Lavender Hyssop which the bees love and it didn’t seem to cause any issues with them continuing to enjoy that plant. This seemed to be a good solution because I didn’t want to use any chemicals or other harmful solutions to keep these hungry birds from my garden.

Scarecrows, photo courtesy Wikipedia

Scarecrows have also been for centuries as a way for farmers to keep these birds from their crops. The idea was to make a large figure that resembled a human that would make the birds think that there were people in the garden, which scared them away. Today Scarecrows are found all around the world and there are scarecrow making contests. Adding a scarecrow to your garden will not only possibly help keep away the bird pests but also add a great seasonal look to your garden. If you google Scarecrows and your city or county name, you may find a local event featuring scarecrows.

http://icwdm.org/handbook/birds/AmericanCrows.asp

http://www.extension.colostate.edu/douglas/agri/wildlife.shtml
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scarecrow

Providing for Birds in the Winter by Donna Duffy

Black-capped Chickadee, photo courtesy birds gallery.net

Many different kinds of birds make their home along the Front Range of Colorado, and it doesn't take much cost or effort to attract and feed them. Joe Julian, CSU Horticulture, offers the following tips for winter feeding of birds in Colorado.